COMPETENCES FOR THE HEALTH COMMUNICATION SPECIALIST OF THE 21ST-CENTURY

This article reports the results of an expert working group convened t o define competencies required to function effectively as a health com munication specialist. Participants were surveyed before the working g roup meeting on a range of issues related to training master's-level p ublic health communication specialists. Survey responses were used to initiate the discussion at a subsequent two-day working group meeting. Survey and working group results clearly indicated that competence in this arena includes aspects of theory and practice. A pedagogical fra mework emerged, in which types of theories and practice-oriented skill s were specified at both the individual and societal levels of analysi s. This framework can be used to guide the development of graduate-lev el curricula in health communication.